Numbering-machine.



G. L. JOHNSTON.

NUMBERING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 3, 1912. RENEWED DEC. 15, 1913.

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NUMBERING MACHINE.

APPLICATION EILEE SEPT. s, 1912. RENEWED EEO. 15, 1913.

1,102,588. a n ed July 7, 1914.

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WITNESSES:

INVENTOR ORNEY THE NUNRIS PETERS (0. PHUTU-LI'IHO., WASHINGTON. D. C.

CLARENCE L. JOHNSTON, 0F OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA.

NUMBERING-MACHINE.

I Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 7, 1914.

Application filed September 3, 1912, Serial No. 718,267. Renewed December 15, 1913. Serial No. 806,881.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLARENCE L. J OHNS- TON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oakland, in the county of Alameda and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Numbering-Vlachines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to printing presses, and particularly to numbering attachments for printing presses.

Manifold books are prepared from long strips of webs of paper which are printed as required and provided with numbers. When desired, manifold books are numbered consecutively, that is, as follows: Beginning sheet one, is numbered 1, sheet two numbered 2, and so on, up to the required number desired, the numbers often running as high as the hundreds of thousands. Another method of numbering manifold books is to number the sheets in each book from 1 to 50 and in addition, number each book with a serial or book number. The first book would therefore have its sheets numbered from 1 to 50, and in addition all the'sheets in the first book would be numbered 1; the second book would have its sheets numbered from 1 to 50, and in addition all the sheets in the second book would be numbered 2, and so on, up to the desired number of books required.

In the manufacture of manifold books, as practised at present, it is necessary to have one kind of numbering machine to put on the consecutive numbers, and an entirely differently constructed numbering machine to put on the serial numbers.

The object of my invention is to so design and construct the press, that the same numbering machines may be utilized for either serial or consecutive work, as contrary to present requirements of separate and different machines for each kind of work. At present serial machines are es pecially constructed so that they will change number once in periods of fifty operations of the pawl. My device is designed to use an ordinary consecutive machine, but to ac tuate its pawl only in periods of fifty revo lutions of'cylinder for serial numbers, or at each revolution for consecutive numbering.

The invention consists of a numbering device, a carrier therefor, and means for consecutively or periodically actuating the device during the rotation of the carrier, and in details of construction which will be more fully explained by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a partial sectional view of my improved press. Fig. 2 is an end view of the invention. Fig. 3 is a transverse section of the printing cylinder. Fig. 4 shows a section of a book strip. 7

In its illustrated embodiment, an impression cylinder 2 is mounted on a shaft 3, supported in a press frame 4. Mounted parallel to the cylinder is a carrier 5 in the form of a cylinder which is longitudinally slotted through at 6, to form a seat for numbering devices, as 7. This device has the usual printing wheels 8, which are adapted to print a web supported on the cylinder 2. The wheels are actuated by a rack 9 which is moved by a suitable plunger 10 mounted in the device 7. This device is of the consecutive type, so that for each cycle of the plunger 10 the numbering face is increased one digit.

My invention pertains to means for actuating the number device at certain periods during the operation of the press, or for each revolution of the'device with. its carrier. WVhen I desire to print each page section of a strip A, Fig. 4, with a consecutive number, I key on one end of shaft 3 a gear 11, which drives a gear 12 of equal pitch diameter loose on a bushing 13 on one end of the carrier or numbering cylinder 5. The gear 12 is formed with an internal gear 14 so that a shaft 16 mounted in cylinder 5, and on which pinion 15 is fast, will turn two revolutions to one of gear 12 and cylinder 2. The cylinder or carrier 5 is driven by a gear 17 thereon, which meshes with a gear 18 fast on shaft 3; the ratio of gears 1718 being one to two respectively, so that the cylinder 2 turns once while carrier 5 turns twice. If gears 1112are one to one, then while pinion 15 is making one revolution the carrier 5 is also making one revolution, though the gears 11-12 and cylinder are making but one-half'of a revolution. Consequently, shaft 16 and an eccentric 19 formed thereon will make a revolution with the shaft While the cylinder 5 turns once.

The eccentric bears upon a long plate 20 laterally movable in the slot 6 of the carrier 5; the plungers 10 of the numbering devices 7 being pressed against the plate by a spring 10 of each device. Hence, in order to print consecutive numbers, the plate 20 must be shifted by the eccentric 19 at every revolution of the carrier 5, and this will be effected by the use of gears 1112 and 1415 to revolve the eccentric within the carrier once for each revolution of the latter.

The means and operation for accomplishing the periodic change of numbers after a number of rotations of carrier 5 to print serially is as follows: The gear 11 is removed. The gear 12 is then clamped by abrake 21, connected to a convenient part of the press, so that it cannot turn with the cylinder 5 unless coupled to it by suitable means, as for instance, a pawl 22, adapted to snap into one or another of peripheral notches 23 of gear 12. The pawl 22 is pivoted upon a gear 25 keyed to carrier 5 and is normally pressed into a notch by a spring2 l, though it may be held in inoperative position by a pin 26 insertible in a hole 27 in gear 25. So long as the pawl. 22 is in engagement with gear 12 the latter, the pinion 15 and the eccentric 19 will revolve as a unit with the gear 25 fast on carrier 5, the gear 12 slipping. in brake 21 and the numbering devices 7 will not be actuated to change the serial number being printed on the web. The change in serial number is accomplished when the pawl 22 is disengaged from gear 12 and this is stopped by brake 21.. The disengagement of pawl 22 is effected by a device of appropriate structure, one form consisting of atrip 29 projecting radially from a" gear 30 which isdriven by gear 25. The trip will engage and operate pawl 22 once in every so many predetermined revolutions of gear 30, so that the gear 12 being released will be halted by brake 21. Since the carrier continues to re volve, carrying around the eccentric, this will revolve within the carrier because of the rotation of pinion 15 in'the now stationary internal gear 1.4: and the plate 20 will actuate the plungers 10 and this the pawls 9 of each numbering device 7. The number of revolutions the carrier 5 may have before the trip will engage the pawl is determined by the ratio existing between the gears 2530.' When the numbering device wheels are to be changed relatively every fifty pages, then I use gears 2530'ofthe ratio 51 to 50 respectively. The pairs of gears 25 and 30 constitute what is commonly known in the mechanical art as gears having a hunting tooth, because of the fact that the tooth, for example, ongear 80, which is adjacent the trip 29, will engage the tooth on gear' 25 adjacent the end of the pawl 22 once in a predetermined number of revolutions of the gears. If the ratio of the gears is 50 to 51 one revolution while the carrier makes a half turn, thus allowing time for the eccentric 19 to change the numbering devices.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is

1. In a device of'the class described combination, a numbering device, a rotary carrier upon which said numbering device is mounted, an impression cylinder over which a web may travel and adapted to co incide for peripheral contact with the numbering device, an actuator operating with said numbering device to change the numbers adapted to be printed thereby, and

means for driving said actuator, said driving mechanism including a differential gearing cooperating with an eccentrically mounted shaft carried by thesaid rotary carrier carrying the numbering device.

2. In a device of the class described in combination,'a numbering device, a rotary carrier'upon which said numbering device is slidably mounted, an impression cylinder arranged to cooperate with said numbering device and having the same peripheral speedas the rotary carrier for the numbering device, an actuator for the numbering device, an eccentrically mounted shaft adapted to operate said actuator, said eccentrically mounted shaft being mounted within and carried by the rotary carrier for the numbering device,

and differential gearing controlled by the rotation of said rotary carrier whereby the eccentrically mounted shaft is operated at predetermined intervals to change the printing face numbers in the numbering device.

3. A device of the class described in combination, a numbering device, a rotarycarrier upon which said numbering device is slidably mounted, an actuator for said numbering device to change the printing face numerals, an eccentricshaft adapted to drive said actuator and mounted within said rotary carrier, gear members adapted to drive ?said eccentric shaft, a pairof gears provided,

i with a hunting tooth, and means controlled 1 by said hunting tooth gears for determining gwhen the driving gears for said eccentric shaft will be operated.

numbering device, a rotary carrier upon iwhich said numbering device is mounted, an actuator for changing the printing faces 1 4. In a device of the class described, a

iof said numbering device, an eccentrically I imounted shaft within said rotary carrier,

;a driving gear operatively connected with isaid eccentrically mounted shaft, a sleeve rotatively mounted upon said rotary carrier, In testimony whereof I have hereunto set an internal gear formed upon said sleeve my hand in the presence of two subscribing and adapted to cooperate With said driving Witnesses.

gear, an external gear also formed upon said CLARENCE L. JOHNSTON. sleeve, and timing mechanism controlled by Witnesses:

the rotation of said rotary carrier for con- C. MAoKENzIn,

trolling the operation of said driving gear. CHAS. N. CRAMPToN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner 0! Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

